Image sticking is a phenomenon that can occur with a video display and can result in a faint, visible retained image of a persistently displayed image on the video display screen when the image is no longer actively displayed by the video display screen. Image sticking in a video display screen (also known as image retention or image ghosting or image burn-in) results in a faint but visually perceptible outline or image of a previously persistently displayed image (that has remained fixed/unchanged for a prolonged time period) remaining visible even when the previously displayed fixed or largely-fixed image has ceased to be displayed. The retained image can remain visible to/perceptible by a viewer for a prolonged period, and in extreme cases may be permanently visible to/perceptible by a viewer.
For phosphor-based video screens (such as, for example, a CRT or a plasma screen), a burnt-in retained “ghost” image can be a permanent blemish. For liquid crystal video display screens (such as thin film transistor (TFT) video display screens and/or the like), the effect can be reversed such as by operating the screen at an elevated temperature (such as about 30 degrees Celsius to about 55 degrees Celsius) for several hours (such as, for example, two to five hours or more) in “all-black” mode.
Use of the likes of screen savers and automatic power-downs are known methods useful to mitigate/reduce/avoid image sticking in video displays. Use of block patterns and avoidance of distinct lines or the like have also been suggested/used. Use of particular colors (such as grey) and/or avoidance of intense, bright colors for prolonged fixed static displayed images has also been suggested/used. Video screens may be particularly susceptible to image sticking when operated at elevated temperatures to display a static image for a prolonged time period (such as, for example, around 15 to 30 minutes or longer), and avoidance of display of a fixed static image for a prolonged period at an elevated temperature (such as higher than about 30 degrees Celsius) has also been suggested to avoid/mitigate image sticking.